When teenagers in occupied Jersey stole a cache of Christmas letters posted
home by German soldiers, it was a small act of wartime resistance. Seven
decades later and after a painstaking search, descendants of the troops have
finally received them.

One of a collection of letters containing Christmas greetings from German troops to loved ones which have finally been delivered - 71 years after they were postedPhoto: APEX

The festive act of reconciliation was made possible after the letters, hidden away in a grand piano since the theft in 1941, were handed in to archivists.

A gang of youths, all aged 15 or 16, had stolen the 90 letters from a Wehrmacht field post office in St Helier, in a perhaps rash bid to give the hated occupiers a bloody nose. They would have faced severe penalties if caught.

Fearing discovery, the youths handed them to a friend, who stashed them in a grand piano for 66 years, before taking them to the official Jersey Archive.

German soldiers stationed in Jersey during the Occupation of the Channel Islands during 1940 to 45 (APEX)

With the bitter memories of the occupation long-faded, officials contacted Jersey Post and asked them to help deliver as many as possible to their intended recipients, or their relatives.

It seemed an impossible task, given that many of the letters were addressed to now-defunct PO Box numbers or administrative offices, and some were meant to be posted to locations that no longer form part of Germany.

Despite the obstacles, counterparts at Deutsche Post in Germany managed to find ten families related to the original recipients who still live in the same places.

The letters were handed over yesterday, on the 71st anniversary of the date they should have been received.

Many of them paint a poignant picture of the young men who were sending Christmas greetings to loved ones and pining for home.

Stuart Nicolle, of Jersey Archive, said they formed a “truly remarkable collection” and while there had previously been plenty of evidence of how islanders coped with the occupation, they gave a “unique and fascinating insight” into the occupiers.

Michael McNally of Jersey Post said: “When we were first asked to help we thought it would be an impossible task.

“So much time has passed and Germany has changed considerably, both geographically and demographically.”

It had initially been hoped that just one of the families involved could be contacted.

“To find ten is beyond our hopes and as time goes on our aim is to locate even more people to receive these letters,” Mr McNally said.

The letters reveal a feeling of despondency and homesickness among the men on the second Christmas of the occupation.

In one of them, a soldier writes: “I wish you a merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year. But what I hope most is that the war will come to an end soon, so that we can all enjoy life again.”

A second describes a perilous journey by boat to reach the island, saying: “We all got seasick and had to grasp each other. I draw you a small picture which shows how the ship got rocked.”

Another soldier promises an uncle that he has sent two bottles of French schnapps, regretting that he could not obtain any cognac, but adding: “I hope you enjoy it at Christmas or on New Year’s Eve. It’s the best medicine when you’ve got a cold.”

In a further letter, a lovelorn lance corporal, Lothar Wilhelm, tells his fiancée Katee Schwartz: “The 14 days we spent together were the most beautiful of my life. Christmas won’t be so happy for me this year, because I’m only happy when I’m with you.”

One of the letters that has been delivered reached a soldier’s family after a 91-year-old comrade of his who had been stationed in Jersey at the time was identified.

The search was carried out with the help of the German Red Cross as well as experts in German handwriting and the German military.

One of the recipients was Engelbert Bergmann, 55, from Frankfurt, who was given a letter written by soldier Emil Adam, a neighbour of his grandfather. He said at first he thought it was a joke.

But he told the BBC: “I feel it is very important to have the other letters delivered in these cases where family or sons and daughters are still around.”

Many of the papers retained vivid colours, possibly because they had been stored away from the sunlight, and they include colourful greeting cards.